High chairs designed for use by infants or toddlers are well known in the prior art. Such seats are typically designed to provide a safe and secure raised seating for the infant or toddler, and are recognized to be of particular utility at mealtimes. Typically, high chairs include a raised seat; means for retaining the infant or toddler in the raised seat; and a tray located forward of the raised seat.
The means for retaining the infant or toddler (‘child’) in the seat conventionally comprises a harness and/or one or more retaining bars such as one that locates laterally between arm rests of the raised seat. One problem that can arise with such retaining means is in preventing the child from sliding down the seat. Another problem relates to the ease of placing the child in the raised seat and applying the harness or indeed, in releasing the harness when removing the child from the raised seat. Many infants or toddlers dislike the sense of being ‘tethered in’ and will wriggle, squirm and squeal to resist this. For the parent or carer, simple means of retaining the child are therefore preferable.
Applicant has appreciated that means for retaining the toddler of infant may be provided in combination by a central post projecting up from the front part of the seat base of the raised seat and a laterally (i.e. backwards and forwards) movable tray provided to the top of that central post. In use, the tray is first moved forwards (i.e. laterally away from the seat back) to create a space through which the infant or toddler may be placed into the raised seat with one leg on either side of the central post. The tray is then moved backwards to a position, in which the rear of the tray locates close to the infant or toddler's trunk (i.e. stomach, midriff or chest) and acts in combination with the central post to retain the infant or toddler in this retaining position. The infant or toddler cannot slide down in the seat because of the presence of the central post. To remove the infant or toddler, the tray is simply moved forwards to the unloading position.
Applicant has now realized that use of such a central post/movable tray retaining set-up is facilitated by ease of tray movement from the unloading to retaining positions and vice-versa. In embodiments, the high chair herein allows for spring-assisted tray movement (e.g. spring-release) with the minimum of user steps and effort, which is highly advantageous in situations where the parent or carer is conducting those steps whilst also holding a wriggling, squirming or screaming child.
Applicant has also realized that such central post/movable tray retaining set-ups can give rise to a problem in that the optimum retaining position (i.e. defined in combination by post and tray position) will vary with the size of the child. Applicant has therefore recognized that it is advantageous for variation of that retaining position to be provided both in terms of height and lateral spacing of the tray from the raised seat. In embodiments, the high chair herein provides for that ‘tailoring’ of child retaining position. Applicant has also found that since the high chair herein enables for optimum ‘tailoring’ of the child retaining position distinct arm rest need not necessarily be provided to the seat.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,550 describes a high chair for an infant or toddler that includes a seat element, a frame assembly for supporting the seat element on a supporting surface, and a feeding tray assembly on the seat element. The feeding tray assembly includes a centre support and retaining post which is secured to the front centre portion of the seat element and a tray element which is adjustably secured to the upper end of the centre support and retaining post. The centre support and retaining post is operative for preventing a child from sliding downwardly between the seat element and the tray element. No spring-assisted tray release or variability of height of the tray element is provided by this high chair, which also requires distinct arm rests.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a high chair for an infant or toddler that provides for ease of retaining of the infant or toddler therein.